Seungho pushed through the doors of KTA and bowed at the receptionist.  She looked up and smiled, recognizing him.

“Here again for Lee Joon-shi?” she asked.

“Yes,” Seungho nodded, “Can I please interrupt his schedule for a few moments?  I need to talk to him…”

The receptionist smiled and said, “You two must be great friends.  But Lee Joon-shi isn’t in today… he must have forgotten to tell you?”

Seungho blinked in surprise.  Joon wasn’t in?  “I… What do you mean he’s not in?” Seungho asked, confused.

“He has today off,” she replied, checking her computer and nodding, “Maybe he’s home?”

Seungho felt worry rush through him.  If Joon wasn’t here… where was he?  Seungho had been so sure that Joon would be here; where else would he go?  Wracking his brain, he tried to remember their conversations.  Did Joon mention any friends other than Hyunsik and Cheondoong? 

Bowing to the receptionist, he pulled out his cellphone and dialed Joon’s number again.  His heart thumped in his chest as the call was once again bumped to voicemail after several rings.  Praying that he was overreacting, Seungho bowed towards the receptionist again to catch her attention.

“Is… Is Mun Hyunsik-shi in?” he asked, “If so, can I have a few moments of his time?”

The receptionist nodded and picked up the phone.  After a brief moment of silence, she said, “Mun-bujangnim, Yang…”  She glanced up at him sheepishly.

“Yang Seungho,” Seungho filled in as she returned to the phone.

“Yang Seungho-shi is here… yes, I understand,” she said, covering the speaker and turning towards Seungho.  “He’s about to head into a meeting; he’d like to speak to you over the phone,” she said, holding out the phone to him.

Hesitantly, Seungho accepted the phone and placed it to his ear.  “Hello,” he said.

“Seungho-yah!” he heard Hyunsik reply in an over-familiar tone of voice, “What wind blew you in again eh?  Twice in two days!”

Seungho felt his eye twitch as he frowned at Hyunsik’s irritating familiarity.  Keeping his irritation in check, he asked politely, “Yes, Mun Hyunsik-shi, I’m looking for Lee Joon.  Did… did he contact you last night after he left?”

“Oh Joonie?” Hyunsik replied, causing Seungho’s heart to jump in expectation, “Nope, haven’t heard from him since he went home last night.  Why?  Did something happen?”  His voice suddenly a bit more serious, he asked, “Is he not with you?”

“No,” Seungho sighed, disappointment flooding him, “We… it doesn’t matter.  Thanks.”  He turned to the receptionist but before he could hand over the phone, he heard Hyunsik say something over the earpiece. 

“Seungho-yah,” Hyunsik said, his voice serious this time, “Keep me posted on Joon, you hear me?  If you’re saying what I think you’re saying, then you need to keep me in the loop on his whereabouts.  He’s my star; his safety’s my number one concern.”

Seungho had to give it to the guy; Mun Hyunsik was one smart cookie.  But still, he was still as irritating as hell.  “I know,” Seungho replied, “I’ll… I’ll keep you posted.  What’s your number?”  He pulled out his own cell and jot down the number as Hyunsik rattled it off.  Nodding, Seungho handed the phone back to the receptionist and thanked her.

As he pushed through the front doors, he sighed with worry.  It was unlike Joon to ignore his calls and stay out without telling Hyunsik.  Although Seungho didn’t trust him, he knew Joon trusted Hyunsik like a brother.  If Hyunsik didn’t even know where he was…

Sighing, he returned to the apartment and decided to wait.  He tried to get some sleep in hopes of passing the time.  He reassured himself that Joon was still just mad and avoiding his calls.  After two hours of trying to sleep, he gave up and called Joon again.  When all he got was voice mail, his restlessness got the better of him and he began scrolling through his phone.  He realized how little he actually knew about Joon.  Other than Hyunsik and Cheondoong, he had no idea who else Joon came into contact with. 

Seungho paced in the living room in restlessness.  It was already past noon and still, he hadn’t heard from Joon.  He’d called at least another dozen times, all of them unanswered and bumped to voice mail. 

Something was wrong.  No matter how mad Joon was, he had enough sense to call home to make sure Seungho knew he was safe.  Joon knew that Seungho was protective; he would never do this.  Something was definitely wrong.

He’d thought of calling Cheondoong but decided against it.  Cheondoong was still in school; Seungho had tried to convince himself he was overreacting.  Besides, Joon didn’t even know Cheondoong’s number.  There was no way he would’ve bunked at Cheondoong’s place last night.  And even if he did, Seungho was sure Cheondoong would’ve called him by now.  Still…

Seungho glanced at the clock; it was nearly 12:30 PM.  What time did high schools get out for lunch?  Frustration seeped into him as he threw caution to the wind and dialed Cheondoong’s number.  After a few rings, Cheondoong picked up.

“Oh Seungho-hyung,” Cheondoong answered.  His mouth sounded full; it was probably lunch time.

“Cheondoong-ah,” Seungho said, unable to keep the panic out of his voice, “Have you heard from Joon?”  He continued pacing the living room, his heart still racing in his chest.  Again, he prayed that he was overreacting.

“Eh?” Cheondoong replied, “No, why?”

Seungho sighed as disappointment flooded him.  He considered telling Cheondoong everything but resorted to telling him only part of the truth.  “I… we had a fight last night and he stormed out.  I haven’t heard from him since,” Seungho said, his voice becoming a bit strained, “He’s not at work either because apparently he had a day off today.”

Silence fell on the other end.  Seungho heard the background noise disappear followed by what sounded like a soft click.  Cheondoong must’ve moved to a quieter location. 

“He… he hasn’t contacted you since last night?” Cheondoong asked, worry in his voice.

“No,” Seungho said, sighing, “He never does this.  Even if he’s mad…”

Again, Seungho was met with silence.  He heard Cheondoong draw in a deep breath before…

“Hyung…” Cheondoong said slowly, “Did… Did Joonie-hyung mention making friends with anybody recently?”

Seungho frowned as he stopped in his tracks.  Friends?  “No, why?” Seungho replied, waiting with bated breath. 

He heard Cheondoong exhale before he said, “Hyung… oh I hope I’m dead wrong… Hyung, are you home?”

“Yes, I am,” Seungho replied impatiently, “What-”

“I’m on my way,” Cheondoong said before he hung up.

Seungho stared at his phone as the call disconnected.  His stomach suddenly felt heavy and his chest stifled.  What was that about?  Did Cheondoong know something?  His legs suddenly felt weak.  Collapsing onto the couch, Seungho stared at the phone in his hand. 

What the hell is going on?

“Where are you going?” Chulyong asked as Cheondoong packed up his things, “Are you skipping?”

“Yes,” Cheondoong said shortly before shouldering his bag and rushing out of the classroom.  Unfortunately, Chulyong tailed him like a professional stalker.

“What happened?” Chulyong asked, frowning, “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Something happened at home,” Cheondoong said, as he thundered down the stairs to the first level, “Go back.  Don’t follow me.”

“I’m worried,” Chulyong said, his voice a bit anxious, “Can I help?”

“No,” Cheondoong replied, “Go back or you’ll get in trouble too.”

“Hyung-” Chulyong started but Cheondoong interrupted him with a heavy frown.

“Bang Chulyong!” Cheondoong said firmly.  When Chulyong bit his lips, Cheondoong sighed and softened his expression.  “Go back,” he said, “I’ll take care of it.”  Turning on his heels, he quickly rushed towards the gates.

“Does this have to do with Jang Hyunwoo?” Chulyong called after him.

Cheondoong froze.  He turned as Chulyong caught up with him.

Sighing, Chulyong said, “If it does, then let me come with you.  I used to be his gofer, remember?  I might be able to help.”  He looked at Cheondoong with sincere eyes as his face lost the usual puppy look.  In its place, the brave and stubborn Chulyong surfaced, looking at him with a firm expression.  “Let me come with you, hyung,” he said.

Cheondoong contemplated the thought.  He didn’t want to get Chulyong involved.  If Joon’s disappearance really had something to do with Hyunwoo, then it could be drug related.  And although Chulyong meant well, he was still naïve.  Getting wrapped up in this would be dangerous. 

On the other hand however, he could be a big help.  He might know information about Hyunwoo that nobody else knew.  And if it really was him…

“Fine,” Cheondoong said, “But just tag along.  I don’t want you getting involved more than you need to.”

“Deal,” Chulyong said excitedly as the two rushed towards the nearest bus stop, “So… what’s this I’m getting involved in?”

Shaking his head in exasperation, Cheondoong prayed that his gut feeling was dead wrong.

Seungho jumped when he heard a knock on the door.  Slipping and sliding on the wooden floor, he rushed to the front door and pulled it open.

“Yah, you’re alive!” Byunghee said as the door opened, “I was worried when you didn’t show up to class today.  You never miss-” His expression quickly lost its humour, however, when he noticed Seungho’s expression.  “What’s wrong?” he asked; his voice serious, “You look like death warmed over.”

Sighing as disappointment threatened to make him cry; Seungho moved aside and closed the door behind Byunghee. 

“I ed up,” Seungho said as the two sat on the couch, “I ed up bad, Byunghee-yah.”

“What happened?” Byunghee asked, all traces of humour gone from his usual smart- attitude.

Seungho sighed as he ran his hands over his face.  “Joon and I fought last night.  I… said some things that I shouldn’t have and…” he sighed, “Joon ran out last night.  I haven’t heard from him since.”

“You can’t get a hold of him?” Byunghee asked, frowning.

“No,” Seungho croaked, “He’s not picking up.  He’s not at KTA either; he doesn’t do this.”  He looked up at Byunghee as he tried to convey his worry.  “He doesn’t just not pick up.  Even if he’s mad, he’d pick up if I called over thirty times!” he said, desperation seeping into his voice.  Catching himself, he took a deep breath and laughed.  “Am I overreacting?” he asked, shaking his head.

“No,” Byunghee said, “Not if this is something you’re sure he’d never do.”  He leaned back in the chair and frowned.  “Have you called his friends?” he asked.

“That’s the thing,” Seungho replied, ashamed, “I don’t know any of them.  Other than his manager at KTA and Cheondoong, I don’t know anybody else that he’s in contact with.”  He pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut.  “What do I do?” he asked softly, “I feel like I’m suffocating.”

“If you think things are serious enough,” Byunghee said, “Then you should report this to the police.”

Seungho looked up at him with surprise.  Police?  Should he go to the police?  It was barely twelve hours since Joon disappeared… would they take it seriously?  Seungho bit his lip as he contemplated the option.  Calling the police would be the next logical step.  Even if it turned out to be a false alarm, it was still better safe than sorry.  But… Cheondoong sounded like he knew something.  Should he wait to see what Cheondoong says?

As if on cue, the doorbell rang again.  Jumping up, Seungho rushed to it and opened the door.  He sighed in relief as Cheondoong walked in hastily.  Seungho blinked as another boy bowed at him and also entered.

“Did you hear anything yet?” Cheondoong asked as he kicked off his shoes.

“No,” Seungho said, frowning, “Tell me everything you know, now.”

Cheondoong nodded.  “This,” he gestured to the boy, “Is Bang Chulyong.  He’s a schoolmate of mine.  He might be useful if… if things are what I think they are.”

Chulyong bowed and said quietly, “Hello, I’m Bang Chulyong.  Nice to meet you…”

Seungho bowed quickly and replied, “Yes, I’m Yang Seungho.  I… I’m a friend of Cheondoong.”  He gestured towards the living room where Byunghee had stood up.  “This is a friend of mine from college,” he introduced, “Jung Byunghee.  He… he knows about Joon’s situation.”

“I should probably be on my way,” Byunghee said, “I don’t want to intrude.”

Cheondoong stopped him as he made to leave.  “If… this is really what I think it is, we’ll need all the help we can get,” he said, glancing at Seungho.

Byunghee nodded and sat back down.  When everyone sat in Seungho’s small living room, Cheondoong took a breath and began.

“The reason I asked if Joonie-hyung made friends with anyone was because… I think he’s made friends with somebody I know,” he said, twisting fingers as he spoke.  “It’s hard to say this but… I… I used to do drugs for a while before my sister’s accident.” 

Seungho’s eyes widened as Cheondoong gazed at the floor in shame.  “You… you did what?” he whispered in shock.

“I was going through a rough time and…” Cheondoong said, shaking his head, “That doesn’t matter; it’s in the past.  I quit and I’ve been clean for a long time.  What I wanted to say was… the boy that sold the drugs at school… I think he somehow found Joonie-hyung’s contact information.”

The silence was so thick, it was suffocating.  When no one interrupted him, Cheondoong continued.  “Jang Hyunwoo… that’s the name of the kid that sold me drugs,” he said as Chulyong gulped, “The day that you visited my sister, he called Joonie-hyung’s cellphone.”  He looked at Seungho and asked, “Did he ever mention anything about that before?”

“No,” Seungho said, shaking his head, “We… things got a bit complicated after that visit.”  He met Byunghee’s gaze quickly before turning his attention back to Cheondoong, “You think Joon might be with him?”

Cheondoong nodded and bit his lip.  “If he is, then we can probably find him quickly.  Jang Hyunwoo… he’s not a good guy,” he murmured, “He’s… he’s got a dangerous feel about him.”

“Do you know where he is?” Seungho asked, standing, “If you do, then let’s go.”

“I know he has a headquarters like place in an empty house; I was there the other day,” Cheondoong said, also standing. 

“Hold on,” Byunghee interrupted, grabbing Seungho’s arm, “Don’t be hasty.”  He frowned and crossed his arms.  “If drugs are involved, we need to get the police involved too,” he said, “Busting in there looking for a fight isn’t going to help anyone.”

“Then let’s get Joon back first,” Seungho suggested impatiently, “Then we can report this to the police-”

“And what?  Get arrested for fighting?  By the time the police arrives, they’ll have hidden all the drugs,” Byunghee said, trying to calm Seungho down, “They’ll get off scot free and we’ll be in for starting a fight.”

“But,” Chulyong piped up timidly as the three turned to look at him, “Not that I’m defending Hyunwoo-hyu-… er Jang Hyunwoo or anything but… we don’t actually know if Joonie-hyung’s even with him right?  If we call the police, aren’t we making a potentially false accusation?”  He glanced at Cheondoong for support and sighed in relief when Cheondoong nodded.

“Chulyong’s right… we have no idea if Joonie’s even there,” Cheondoong admitted, sitting back down, “We might cause a big commotion by sending the police there…”

Seungho sat back down.  The desperation was driving him crazy.  Now that he’d learned about this Jang Hyunwoo character, he was itching to do something… anything.  “So… then what do I do?” he asked softly, “What… what can I do?”  He looked at Byunghee as he tried to keep his hands from shaking. 

“I think…” Byunghee said, sighing deeply, “I think this is out of our hands.  We’re a bunch of teenagers… I don’t think there’s anything we can really do.”

“So then… do we go to the police?” Chulyong asked anxiously, “But what do we report?”

“We report a missing persons case,” Byunghee said, standing, “And let the law handle this.”

As everyone stood, Seungho asked softly, “Will that be enough?”

Byunghee squeezed his shoulder.  “Hopefully it’ll be more than enough,” he replied gently, “Hopefully.”

“Aren’t you guys overreacting?”

Seungho frowned in surprise as the police officer behind the reception counter dismissively waved his hand.

He had made his way to the nearest police station with Byunghee in tow.  He’d insisted on going with Seungho while the two young ones stayed at the apartmen and waited in case Joon came home.  After taking an excruciating bus ride, they’d finally arrived to report their case.  But…

“Maybe,” Byunghee jumped in before Seungho’s temper flared, “But we thought it was smarter to report this.  He’s never done this before so it’s stra-”

“He’s been missing for less than a day,” the policeman said, rolling his eyes, “It doesn’t even count as a missing persons case.  Besides… he probably just ran away from home.”

Seungho clenched his fists as he opened his mouth to speak but Byunghee cut him off.

“That might be the case,” Byunghee said, his voice turning steely.  Seungho glanced at him; in all the years they’d been friends, he had only seen Byunghee get pissed a handful of times.  “It’s true that our friend may have just forgotten to tell us where he was going,” he said, “But we don’t know that.  And, unless you have psychic powers, neither do you.  So until he returns home, we’d like to report a missing persons case.  We thank you for your being an upstanding policeman and trust that you’ll keep us posted on any information regarding his whereabouts… right?”  He finished with a fake smile as the policeman scowled but nodded.  “Thank you,” Byunghee said, nodding curtly before ushering Seungho out of the station.

The two waited for the bus in silence.  Taking out his phone, Seungho dialed Joon’s number again.  And like the other thirty something calls, it was unanswered and bumped to voice mail.  Sighing, he clenched the phone and tried calm his restlessness.

“It’s all we can do,” Byunghee said softly, noticing his anxiety, “Until we hear back… all we can do is wait.”

“I know…” Seungho said softly, “I just…”  He let out a deep breath and gave himself a little shake.  “I have a really bad feeling about this, Byunghee-yah,” he said, showing his best friend a vulnerable side of him that few knew, “This Jang Hyunwoo character… Cheondoong’s worried which probably means he’s worse than we think.”

“Don’t think like that,” Byunghee said, frowning, “You’ll just make yourself worry more.  It doesn’t help.”

“I know,” Seungho said in exasperation, “But I can’t-”  He cut himself off and sighed deeply.

The bus ride home was silent.  As the two entered the apartment, the two young ones jumped up from their seats on the couch and waited for news.

Seungho sighed and sat down silently.  He cradled his head as a dull ache throbbed in the back of his head. 

“We’ve made a police report,” Byunghee filled them in, “They’re not taking it very seriously because he’s been missing for less than a day.  But they’ll keep us posted on any news.”

Cheondoong nodded and returned to his seat. 

“Cheondoong-ah,” Seungho said, feeling defeated and helpless, “Can you tell us a bit more about this Jang Hyunwoo character?”

“I don’t know much about him,” Cheondoong said, gesturing to Chulyong, “But he does.”

Chulyong nodded.  “I… I used to be his gofer when he still attended school,” he said sheepishly, “But yeah, I sort of know his background.  His family’s really well-off; he’s got money coming out the wazoo,” Chulyong said, snorting, “He’s the only child of the CEO of some publishing company.  About a year back, he got his hands on a batch of homemade drugs and he started selling that to-”

“Publishing company?” Byunghee said abruptly, his eyes widening. 

“Eh?” Chulyong said, startled at the interruption, “Yeah, that’s what I heard.  I can’t remember the name though-”

“Jang Hyunwoo… Jang Publishing?” Byunghee murmured, paling.

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Chulyong said, snapping his fingers.

“Jang… Publishing…” Byunghee repeated, frowning as he tried to think.

“What?” Seungho asked, sensing something, “What did you figure out?”

“Laptop,” Byunghee said, looking at Seungho frantically. 

Jumping up from his seat, Seungho grabbed his laptop and opened it up.  He handed it to Byunghee as the latter began typing into the machine and scrolling through site.

Seungho waited as he watched Byunghee’s expression.  His heart raced in his chest with anticipation and restlessness.  Byunghee was smart; he had an exceptionally high IQ.  It was likely he’d figured out something the rest of them hadn’t.

True to his suspicions, Seungho watched Byunghee’s eyes widen like saucers as he finally found what he was looking for.  He glanced up at Seungho and said softly, “I think… we’re in bigger trouble than we thought.”

“What do you mean?” Seungho asked, as Byunghee turned the laptop to face the other three.  Seungho tried scrolling through the article but his eyes weren’t registering the text.  As Byunghee scrolled down, two pictures popped up that made Seungho weak in the knees.

The first picture was a photograph of Dara before her car accident.  The second was of a middle aged man with peppered grey hair and a big belly dressed in a suit.

“Jang Hyunwoo’s father,” Byunghee said quietly, “Is the CEO of Jang Publishing... Jang Daeho.”

Author's notes:

Again, I really REALLY apologize for the mishap!  It sometimes happens that I want to rearrange certain parts of my story but then I've already posted it on AFF!  I know it confuses the readers... I'm so sorry!  I'll try not to do this again!  The M portion that some of you already read will be in the next chapter.  SORRY AGAIN!!!!!  (T.T)